


Game Night

by Glowstickia



Series: Gasoline Believer [7]
Category: Paranatural (Webcomic)
Genre: Family Game Night, Gen, Secret Santa, Sibling shenannigans
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-09 14:43:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17408849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Glowstickia/pseuds/Glowstickia
Summary: Its game night at the Puckett household! Board games ALWAYS manage to go awry with some twist to the rules or a meteor crash landing into the neighborhood and you have to fight aliens or something. Isabel and Ed have seen games dissolve into chaos many times before and this time is no different.It is just Monopoly after all.





	Game Night

**Author's Note:**

  * For [whytho](https://archiveofourown.org/users/whytho/gifts).



> HOLY COW I AM SO LATE AND SUPER DUPER SORRY ABOUT THAT! Got hit with vertigo and sickness AAAAAAAAAAND then had to work late almost every night last week. ANYWHO HI WHYTHO I WAS YOUR SECRET SANTA!!! HOPE YOU ENJOY! I had loads of fun writing this :D Merry Belated Holiday!

It was game night.  
  
The Monopoly board rested on the coffee table between them. Zoey gave her brother a toothy grin as she laid out her large pile of money she had collected over the past week. Max squinted at her as he pulled out his small stash from his hoodie pocket. Crumpled colorful paper was gently ironed out by the edge of the table. Zoey shook her head. "You need a wallet."  
  
Max shot her a look. "I have one." He slapped his thigh for emphasis.  
  
"Ya, but if your money tears its invalid."

He looked at the ground and started picking at the carpet. He grimaced as his fingers grazed against some old...pizza sauce. Ew. He wiped his hand on his pants despite the sauce had become encrusted. "Not if you tape it back together," Max muttered as his hand found purchase on a not-so-gross part of the trampled carpet.

Isabel rolled her eyes as she pulled out a duct tape wallet one of the older students gave to her couple weeks ago. She counted the pink and green currency. "You really need to learn how to bet properly, _Maximillion_ ."  
  
Max turned to his left and propped his elbow against the coffee table. "Oh, and you do?" He thumbed to Ed on his other side, "May I remind you who had decided to bet _Mr. Green_ how many jellybeans he could fit up his nose Tuesday? And lost?"

Ed snorted beside him. "Thirty-five."  
  
Zoey grimaced. "Ew. Keep your teen things to yourself."

Isabel gave her an apologetic smile. “Boys, amirite?”

Zoey beamed in response. “I still won’t go easy on you.”

Isabel mocked a gasp as she put a hand on her chest. Zoey giggled. “Oh, and here I was hoping to have an ally in choking out the stocks of-”

Ed slapped his hands on the table; game pieces toppled over, drinks swayed, threatening to tip over. “YOUR DEFEAT!” His glasses flared as he pointed at Zoey.

Max rolled his head towards Isabel. “How much Phoenix Wright has he been playing?”

Isabel shrugged. “I think he reached the part where you do a cross examination with a parrot.”

Zoey crossed her arms. She grinned. “Is that a threat I hear?” She stood and slapped her hands on the coffee table. Max and Isabel quickly caught there drinks. “OH IT'S ON BURGERMEISTER MEISTERBURGER!”

The stairs creaked as father Puckett rose from the bowels of the Corner Store, carrying two boxes of pizza. “Is that corporate rivalry I hear?” He asked, setting down the pizzas at the end of the coffee table. “Remember kids, the banker will turn a blind eye for criminal activity if you have the funds.” The four stared at him. He beamed. “Also dig in or I will eat the pizza and the board myself.”

Paper plates and slices of warm pizza were passed around. Everyone counted their fake money in silence. Dad Banker added a little bit of money to everyone’s small piles of winnings over the past two weeks. Zoey still had the most, just like last time and once again Max had the least. Zoey immediately went for the Scottie Dog piece. Isabel picked the race car. Max chose the top hat.

Ed swiped away the boring old thimble and placed a doll sized shoe on the board next to the other pieces. Max stared at him. Ed just grinned back. Zoey frowned. “Wait is that from my-”

Ed’s grin widened. “You can’t prove anything.” He said quickly.

Dad pulled a chess piece out of his pocket and placed it with the other pieces. Zoey turned to stare at him. Dad just beamed right back. Ed gave him a thumbs up.

“Aw dunk,” Isabel picked up the dice and shook them in her hand, “if I would’ve known we could swap our pieces I’d have picked something else.” 

She rolled 5. “Oh ho, yes! Railroad!” She fished out four blue paper money to hand to Dad Banker, “I’ll purchase a station please.”

Dad nodded. “Of course of course.” And he handed her the deed.

Zoey chewed on her lip and narrowed her eyes towards Isabel. “Oh, its on.”

Isabel fanned herself with the deed. “Should’ve taken up that ally-ship huh?”

Ed rolled Chance. He picked up a card, nodded and laid it face down in front of him. Zoey and Max stared at him. Ed placed the dice in front of Zoey and steepled his hands. “It’s your turn!”

After Zoey took Oriental Avenue by storm it was Max’s roll. He paid his way through Isabel’s and Zoey’s purchases until landing on St. Charles Place. He nodded to the banker and paid the $140 for the deed. Dad banker moved his bishop through and checked how the sheriff was doing handling the criminal scum in this growing city.

Everything was going smoothly for a few rounds of buying and haggling until Max was on a roll. “Snake eyes.” And he rolled again. Two fives. “That’s 10.”

Zoey narrowed her eyes. “One more time Top Hat and you’re gonna go to jail.”

Ed rocked in place. His mouth twitched a grin. ...Ooooookay. Max held the dice in his hands and shook. He released. The white dice bounced on the board, knocking over a couple houses and the black bishop. A 2 aaaaaaaaaaaand….. Max rubbed his eyes and groaned. Another 2.

Zoey stood and blew a bright yellow plastic whistle. “That’s three strikes Mr. Top Hat! You’re going to jail!”

Dad began to sob into his arm. “I can’t believe it. My own son, a criminal!”

Max rolled his eyes. “It’s fine I can-”

Ed stood up. “No! It is NOT fine! I believe he was Framed!”

Isabel’s face twitched. “Ho boy here we go.”

Ed clasped his hands behind his back. “Before he can go to jail, we must find if he TRULY MURDERED THE BODY!” And before anyone could get a word out, Ed dropped a CLUE board on top of the Monopoly board.

Max sighed and rolled his head towards Isabel. “Is this why he was so eager to play tonight?”

Isabel nodded as she took a bite of her pizza. “He thought of it last night.” She confirmed.

Ed positioned the CLUE board on top of the Monopoly board, shuffled the CLUE cards, and passed out the clues, weapons, suspects to everyone.

The case file was already pre-set.

And then, everyone chose their roles: Isabel became Ms. Scarlet. Zoey took on Mrs. Peacock because “Peacocks are pretty Maximum Rudeness.” Ed placed Mr. Green at the starting mark. Max picked the Professor Plum because no he was not being the Colonel his color sucks. Dad Puckett pulled a White Queen from the bottom of the CLUE box and placed it where Ms. White would be.

Zoey and Max shared a sibling look.

Ed clapped his hands. “Alright everyone! We know there is a murderer on the loose and before the police arrive we have to find them and get our stories straight! Let’s search the house!”

Dad CLUE stood up and pumped his fists in the air. “We’ll turn this house upside down!” He said before running off to the kitchen.

“Wait! Dad!” “Where are you going!? He meant in the game!” Zoey and Max both stood just as Dad poked his head back into the room.

“Do you kids need any refills or are you good?”

“...oh, uh more rootbeer please!” “Ditto.”

Isabel downed the rest of her drink and slammed it on the coffee table. “More here too sir!”

Once drinks were poured and the last remaining slices of pizza were passed, the game began.

_**Who Killed Mr. Body and Who Framed Professor Top Hat?** _

Each of them searched the mansion. Ms. Scarlett checked the library and was confirmed by Mrs. Peacock that no the candlestick did not do the job. Ms. Queen White went to the kitchens to check the knives and found no blood. Mr. Green sporadically jumped around the board, using secret passages and asking things his hands already held. Professor Top Hat met up with Ms. Scarlett. The duo called allegiance and combined their findings as Mr. Green snuck through another passage way.

Mrs. Peacock raced to the entrance to declare it was Ms. Queen White with a garden gnome (one of the older students in the Dojo had drawn a small token for laughs) in the study. When she checked the case file-the lights went out.

Zoey crossed her arms and puffed her cheeks as Dad patted her head. “You’ve done well daughter dearest, but you’ll have to wait outside with the police.

Ms. Scarlett stepped forward (Mrs. Peacock had rolled farther and faster) and declared it was Mr. Green, not Ms. Queen White who had chucked a garden gnome at the deceased in his study.

Isabel laid the “Case File” across the board. And sure enough. The Garden Gnome homemade tile fell out with the other two. Everyone turned towards Ed. “Well, Mr. Green,” Isabel said, a smile catching her voice as her lips curled up, “seems like you’re finally going behind bars.”

Max high fived her.

Ed shook his head. “Oh, my dear Ms. Scarlett.” He pulled out the chance card he placed faced down 4 hours earlier. “You’ve forgotten-” he flipped it towards everyone, “I’ve got this Get Out of Jail Free card haha.”

Zoey flipped the board.

Dad checked the clock on the wall. It was reaching towards midnight. He clapped his hands. “Alright kids, that is game. Collect $200 and go to sleep.”

Zoey rubbed her eyes. “But I haven’t taken down Green Running Shoes, yet.”

He rubbed her hair. "I know, go brush your teeth. You'll ruin his empire next time."

Isabel yawned. Max nudged her. “C’mon we’ll get you and Mr. Murderer over here set up for tonight.” She nodded.

“M’kay.”

Ed grinned as he followed his friends to Max’s room.

 

“I don’t know what you mean! The data was inconclusive! I’m a free man!”


End file.
